Books & puzzles

inspector catchpool of scotland yard is invited, along with poirot, to a mysterious house party in ireland held by lady playford. there she makes a surprise announcement of a change in her will – but why would she dangle her fortune in front of someone with only weeks to live? there will be a murder, but not the one that lady playford expects – and what the eyewitness saw cannot possibly have happened, unless someone was in two places at once! one for agatha christie fans everywhere. Garden wars Pushing Up Daisies by mc Beaton lord bellingham wants the local allotments to be sold for housing much to everyone’s anger. when he turns up dead, nobody mourns. but then peta, who only arrived in the village, is also found murdered. who would want to kill her? The last of sherlock The House Of Silk by anthony Horowitz watson’s last story about his and holmes’ adventures begins with an unexpected arrival at 221b baker street in the winter of 1890. but the story can only be shared when they are in retirement, long after most of those involved are dead and the horror has subsided... Mythical beast The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry in 1893, widow cora seaborne takes her son Francis to essex for the fresh air. on arrival, the mythical essex serpent that roams the marshes claiming lives, is rumoured to be back. cora is dismissive but curious. she meets vicar william ransome and they are drawn together.